The Illusionist
by Elijah Smith92
Summary: Jokes take on a more serious note, when teenagers begin to die mysteriously in joke-related incidents. As the mayhem continues, a clown is seen, and it soon becomes a great threat to everyone in Park Vale.


**The Sarah Jane Adventures:**

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**Hope you guys love this story. I know I'm having fun writing it :) **

**Please leave a comment to tell me what you think. **

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**The Illusionist:**

Prologue:

_Hazel eyes stare at the white ceiling, as strokes of amber sun rays dance in unison with the swaying tree branches-morning had arrived and with it her revenge._

_Tiptoeing out of her bed, the pink footie pajama wearing girl carefully opens her bedroom door ajar and peeks out-the hallway is empty._

_Giggling the small blonde girl emerges from her room with a small bottle of yellow dish soap and begins to squirt it onto the wooden floor near the staircase. _

_With the dish soap bottle empty, the girl smiles and runs back into her room._

* * *

_Yawning as he rubs his eyes, Kendall Smith sluggishly walks towards the bathroom, as he prepares to begin his morning routine._

_About halfway to the bathroom door, the blonde teenager stops-something is wrong._

_He can feel his bare feet covered in something slimy, and as he looks down he sees his feet slowly moving apart from each other-Kendall smiles knowing that his baby sister is the one behind this "prank."_

**Kendall: **_Quietly _"Clever…"

_Extending his arms to his side, Kendall begins to slowly walk out of the slippery puddle of soap._

_Sighing as he reached the end, Kendall applies pressure on his left foot-a fatal mistake-as he returns to his normal gait._

_His feet give way causing him to spin like a carousel. Fear enters his blood and thoughts, as he desperately tries to grab onto to something to regain his balance, but it's no use. _

_Dizziness and nausea overcame his being. His left foot, followed by his right one, plummets down the staircase, causing the lean teenager to slam hard into the stair's edge railing._

_Rapid breathing expel from Kendall's mouth, which begins to ease, thinking the worse was over-it wasn't._

_Having been damaged by the impact, the wooden railing suddenly breaks loose from its hinges sending a screaming Kendall to the first floor-silence._

* * *

_Awoken by the commotion, Kendall's parents hastily emerge from their bedroom, gasping at the sight before them._

_Her heart was racing and her breathing was about to catch up. Katie flings her door open and rushes towards the stairs, as she sees her mom descending, but is caught by her father's power hands._

**Father: **_Kneeing _"No…Stay here Katie."

**Katie: **"But…"

**Father: **"Please pumpkin, stay here."

**Katie: **"Ok…"

**Father: **_Extending his pinky out _"Promise?"

**Katie: **_Making a pinky-promise _"Promise."

_Kissing her daughter on her forehead, Kent Smith raises just as a high pitch scream is heard-daughter and father look at each other. _

**Father: **_Raising his hand _"No, stay."

_Reluctant, Katie nods as her dad rushes down the flight of stairs to the landing where her wife was kneeing and crying hysterically. _

_A menacing giggle is heard._

_Perched on the railing to Katie's right, is a handsome clown. Slowly, the teen clown turns its blushing-white powered face to Katie. Smirking, he lifts a flesh colored index finger to his lips-he fades out. _

_Turning her attention back to her parents, the blonde girl sees them descending and the sight she sees as they leave makes her scream like her mother-her brother oozing red liquid from six areas where six wooden railing bars impaled his body._

* * *

**The Illusionist:**

**Part 1:**

_Flowering trees sway in the gentle morning breeze as Rani, dressed in her Park Vale uniform, exits her house._

_Making her way across the stone pavement, Rani sees Luke's yellow Volkswagen emerge from Sarah Jane's drive-Luke parks in front of Rani's house; Clyde is seen in the passenger seat._

**Clyde: **_Getting out to let Rani in _"Took you long enough."

* * *

_Rani rolls her eyes at him as she pushes the passenger seat forward to enter; with Clyde back inside Luke drives off. _

**Rani: **_Pushing her hair back _"Thanks again for giving us a ride to school, Luke."

**Luke: **"No problem."

**Clyde: **_Turning around in his seat to face Rani _"Where did your Dad go again?"

**Rani: **"Rosemont Convention Center."

**Luke: **"For?"

**Rani: **"The CPS Tech-Expo."

**Clyde: **"But isn't that usually held Downtown?"

**Rani: **"Yeah it is, or rather was, until McCormick blew up."

_Clyde and Luke look at each other remembering the explosion that destroyed the exhibition hall and the GAGA Droids. _

**Luke: **"…What about your Mom?"

**Rani: **"Had to leave early, something about flowers and a Bride-zilla."

_Clyde does a Godzilla-like gesture, which makes Rani and Luke laugh. _

**Rani: **"Speaking of early leavings, where did Sarah Jane go so early?"

**Luke: **_While driving_"…To the Field Museum...Apparently there's a baby dinosaur roaming the exhibits…"

_Rani and Clyde mouths drop. _

**Rani: **"A dinosaur?"

_Luke nods as he makes another turn. _

**Clyde: **"How is that even possible?"

**Luke: **"Not sure, but Mom says it might be a baby Hevox or a Silurian."

**Clyde: **"A Sil-what?"

**Luke: **"Silurian. Mom says they're an advance race of reptilian humanoids that went into hibernation underground, but human activity occasionally causes some to surface."

**Clyde: **"Right…"

_Luke smiles at him, seeing that what he said ended up confusing his best mate._

* * *

_Park Vale Academy was a colossal modern building, whose architecture hinted inspiration from the renowned Ludwig Mies van der Rohe-Clyde and Rani are seen getting out of the yellow Volkswagen._

**Clyde: **_Him and Luke fist bump _"So, you're coming to the Carnival later on right?"

**Luke: **"Carnival?"

**Rani: **"You know, the one the Honor Society holds for the Senior Class every year."

**Luke: **"Oh, right. Yeah I'll be there, what time is it at, again?"

**Rani: **"At 2:00, but if you want you can come at 12:00 to help us set up."

**Luke: **"I'll see if I can make it at noon, if not I'll see you guys at 2."

_Smiling, Rani and Clyde step back and wave bye to Luke as he drives away-Clyde opens an engraved bronze door as they enter the school building. _

* * *

_The exhibition hall was dim, with the only light source coming from tiny holes in the ceiling which projected their illumination onto the ominous looking totem poles of the Mojave people. _

_Sarah Jane with her watch flipped open, revealing the Alien scanner underneath, carefully lays out where her brown leather boots should step next for her target is, but a few yards away from her and her friend, Professor Hawthorne, who was rather youthful looking for his age. _

**Professor Hawthorne:** _Whispering _"That's it!"

_Despite the dim lighting, Sarah Jane could make out the light yellow scales of what appeared to be a baby Pachycephalosaurus, which no more than 2 feet tall._

**Professor Hawthorne: **"What is it?"

**Sarah Jane:** _Looking at the Alien Scanner _"An infant Hevox."

**Professor Hawthorne:** "A what?"

_The creature tilts its head._

**Sarah Jane: **_Index finger on lips _"Shhh…"

_The Hevox turns its head locking its sea green eyes with Sarah Jane's brown ones._

**Sarah Jane: **"Don't move…"

**Professor Hawthorne: **"Me or _it_?"

**Sarah Jane: **"Both…"

_Careful not to spook the infant, Sarah Jane slows down her pacing. Nearing it, she slowly raises the net in her right net and throws it; only to miss the creature which runs away the instant the net hits the air-they chase after it._

* * *

_Furnished with Barcelona Chairs, the school's main office was crowded with students, parents, and guests waiting to be called on by one of the four receptionists, who maneuvered themselves behind the large oak front-desk._

_With his sleeves rolled up and his white shirt unbuttoned from the top, James Maschwitz's toned olive skin was exposed, leaving several of the female students sitting down breathless as he entered the office doors._

_Drumming his fingers on the desk as he waits for one the receptionists, James hears a series of laughter coming behind him. Turning his head around, the athletic teenager sees several toddlers running out of the office in chase of a red balloon-James lets out a small laugh as he sees their parents chasing after them. _

**Lucy: **"Can I help you?"

**James: **_Turning_ _around _"Hello Lu."

_If the eyes are the gateway to a person's soul, then James' hazel eyes are the gateway to Heaven and the combination of it with his pearly white smile is the key to a person's instant seduction. _

**James: **_Waving a hand in front of Lucy _"Lu?"

**Lucy: **_Snapping out her trance _"Oh, sorry…I…How can I help you sweetie?"

**James: **"Have the tanks arrived?"

_Seeing Lucy point behind him, the handsome lad turns around and sees a delivery man pushing a dolly with two silver gas cylinders into the office. _

_James cocks his head, something is unusual about the way the delivery is dressed up, but can't quite point it out. _

_With the dolly secure, the delivery man approaches James and Lucy-he hands a clipboard to the elder woman._

**Lucy: **"Oh no, you want the young man there."

_Pivoting, the delivery man smiles as he hands James the clipboard. Taking the clipboard and pen from the youthful man, James sees that the man's eyes are a green-dark turquoise color._

**James: **_Finishing singing his name_ "Here you go mate, do you mind if I use the dolly?"

_The delivery man shakes his head as he dashes out of the room, closing the door behind him._

**Lucy: **"What a strange man."

**James:** "Tell me about it, well I have to get these tanks of…"

_Before James could finish his sentence he notices the labels on the cylinders which are clearly marked as SF__6__ (Sulfur Hexafluoride)__and N__2__O (Nitrous Oxide); he eyes widen as he realizes the cylinders' nozzles are hissing. _

**Lucy: **_With a much deeper voice _"What's...Dear what is wrong with my voice? I sound like Darth Vader!"

_Unable to close the nozzles, James rushes towards the door, grabs the knob, but fines that it won't turn-the office becomes filled with the deep voices of the students, parents, and staff._

**James: **_Voice becoming deep _"Open the windows!"

_But it's useless, for at that precise moment everyone begins to laugh uncontrollably, rendering everyone immobile as the oxygen in their bodies begin to be replaced by the toxic levels of the two gases._

_James hears a tap on the door's glass window. _

_Their eyes meet once more, James' hazel ones and the green-dark turquoise eyes, the ones that belong to the handsome clown. _

**James: **_Laughing _"What? Who are you?"

_The clown simply lifts his maroon color fez from his head, sets it down again, and begins to play what appears to be a flute crossed with a kazoo. _

**James: **"Who are you?"

**Clown: **_Smiling _"...Treacherous…"

_James gives the clown a puzzle look as he sinks onto the floor, closing his eyes forever…_

* * *

_Yellow tape with the word CAUTION repeated over and over again, cut-off the entire second floor of Park Vale as medics carry off the covered bodies of the deceased; police officers try to hold off students who attempt to get a glimpse of the crime scene-Clyde Langer is among the group._

_Clyde could hear his fellow classmates murmur among each other as the medics cover the bodies, some even letting out names of parents and staff members that they recognized. _

_Yet the one body that everyone recognized immediately and sent several girls and some boys over the edge was the fading olive skin teenager, who like the others had a smile on his cold-dead face._

_Screams of agony, sniffling, and tears filled the crowded hall as James Maschwitz's body was carried away-the bell rings._

* * *

_News travels fast. As Clyde makes his way up to the third floor, he hears James Maschwitz's name: how he was too young to have died, too beautiful to have died, how Park Vale would never be the same without its official Adonis. _

_With her books pressed against her chest, Clyde could see Rani waiting for him outside the classroom where nothing exciting happens-Biology class._

_The walls were crowded with posters depicting everything from the Milky-way Galaxy to a poster showing Darwin's Finches-and the shelves lining the poster-free walls weren't a pretty sight per-se. Containers of various size held, both identifiable and unidentifiable species in pale yellow formaldehyde._

**Rani: **_Sitting next to Clyde _"Have you heard?"

**Clyde: **_Nodding _"Yes…"

**Rani: **"I can't believe James Maschwitz is dead."

**Clyde: **"I can't believe I saw his body... (_Turns to face Rani_) But you know what was even more graphic than seeing his corpse?"

**Rani: **"What?"

**Clyde:** "Him smiling…"

**Rani: **_Shocked_"What?"

**Ms. Howe: **"How is everyone today?"

_Unable to maintain their tears within, several girls begin to cry._

**Ms. Howe: **"Did I say something wrong?"

_A hand rises._

**Ms. Howe: **_Pointing to the airborne hand _"Yes, Mr. Hernandez?"

_Logan Hernandez, not quite an Adonis as his friend James Maschwitz, but the peachy skinned teenager had his handsomeness and his dimpled smile was a killer._

**Logan: **_Lowering his hand _"James Maschwitz died…"

**Ms. Howe: **"I…beg your pardon?"

**Intercom: **_Interrupting _"At precisely 10:28 this morning, several students, parents, and staff members were found dead. In their memory, we ask for a moment of silence…We also like to inform Park Vale, that until further instructions, all students must remain in their classrooms, with the sole exception being the Honor Society…that is all."

**Clyde: **_Looking at Rani _"Guess that means the Carnival is still on."

**Rani: **"…Might not be the best thing…"

**Ms. Howe: **_Clearing her throat _"Well then, shall we continue our lesson on the human system?"

**Clyde: **_Taking out his Biology text book _"Like Shakespeare said, 'The Show Must Go On."

**Rani: **"I don't think Shakespeare said that."

_Laughing Clyde opens the large hardcover textbook to the section on the human systems. _

**Ms. Howe: **_With book in hand _"Now who can tell me what system contains the heart, blood vessels, and veins?"

_Without looking up, Clyde knew the hands that would go up immediately-Rani and Logan's. In fact, ever since Luke left for Yale, Logan took Park Vale's Genius title with almost little effort and Rani was determined to take it from him. _

_Seeing that it was the routine of hands, the short hair professor skimmed the room-her greenish-brown eyes fall on a chocolate skin teenager._

**Ms. Howe: **"Mr. Langer?"

_The class laughs. _

**Clyde: **_Looking up _"Sorry, what was the question?"

**Ms. Howe: **_Looking at Clyde _"What system contains the heart, blood vessels, and veins?"

**Clyde: **_Flipping through his text book _"Ummm…The…"

_If Clyde was ever grateful for something strange happening, it would be now. _

_The classroom's soft white light is gradually replaced by a spectrum of colors: reds, blues, yellows, greens, etc._

_Balloons, hundreds upon hundreds of multicolor balloons fill the memorial courtyard as they all glide upwards; students begin to rush over towards the windows. _

**Clyde: **_Looking at Rani _"Is this part of the Carnival?"

**Rani: **"If it is, no one told me."

**Logan: **_Appearing besides Rani _"It seems a stunt by the Honor Society has saved you…"

_Clyde gives the brown eyed teenager a mocking stare._

**Rani: **_Looking at Logan _"This isn't a stunt, at least one that I'm not part of."

**Logan: **_Looking at Rani _"Nor am I."

_The awing returns as Monarch butterflies appear from the collection of balloons, encircling them as they continue to rise up._

**Clyde: **_In Rani's ear _"This is getting strange, even for an April Fool's joke."

**Rani: **_Looking at Clyde _"Why do I get the feeling you're going to say the A-word?"

**Clyde: **_Smiling _"You mean…"

**Logan: **_Interrupting _"A clown?"

* * *

_Streaks of golden sunlight pierce the spectrum of colors as the multicolor balloons along with the Monarch butterflies begin to swirl elegantly into a twister._

_With a smile on titled blushing-powdered face, the mysterious clown ominously waves at the staring students, particularly to the ones in Ms. Howe's Biology Class. _

**Clyde: **"Why do I get the feeling that isn't _just _a clown?"

**Rani: **_With an anxious look _"Because maybe it isn't _just _a clown."

_Removing the fez from his head, the clown takes out a black silk handkerchief from his grey wool vest, covering the opening of the fez with it. Circling the cover top with his left hand, the clown smirks as he yanks the handkerchief off._

_The orange butterflies curl their wings down giving off a scarlet-black cloud followed by a loud boom. _

_The explosions thrusts them against walls, desks, chairs, etc. as sharp pieces of shatter glass stab their expose layers of skin. _

_Lifting himself up with his forearm, Clyde tries to focus on his surroundings as his head forcefully throbs and his ears ring violently like a hummingbird._

**Clyde: **_Looking around _"RANI!"

_Startled by the hand he feels on his right shoulder, Clyde quickly turns around to find a wild hair Rani, whose light brown skin had been grazed by the shattered glass and was slightly bleeding; Clyde takes Rani into his arms._

* * *

_With his arms wrapped tightly around her, Rani is able to grasp onto reality that her delirious state threatens to take, as she forces her disorientated senses and spinning head on Clyde's vital signs: the drumming sound of his beating heart, the rise and fall of his toned chest, and the warmth emanating from his entire body-her sanctuary._

**Clyde: **_Gently lifting Rani from his chest _"…Rani, do you smell that?"

_Closing her eyes, she inhales deep and smells it. A saccharine aroma: an essence of bananas, strawberries, peaches, oranges, and red apples permeates the air-the calm before the storm. _

* * *

_Their transparent wings chop the air, flooding out the moans of pain with their thunderous buzzing; their striped abdomens lean in as their brown-glazed compound eyes target baffled teenagers._

_Hysteria explodes across the room as the swarm of Giant Japanese Hornets begins to pierce and inject their enhanced venom into the veins of several students._

_The sharp stabs flush their flesh with an excruciating burning sensation, driving paranoia deep into the victims' minds as the venom suffocates the life out of their bodies._

_Rani and Clyde watch in horror as their classmates drop dead like flies, twitching out the last drops of life as they hit the title floor._

**Clyde: **"Rani, look at me."

_With tears in her eyes Rani meets Clyde's brown eyes._

**Clyde: **"We're going to get out of here…"

_With curly golden locks of hair cascading down to her shoulders and her strawberry lips slightly parted, revealing a glimpse of her perfect white teeth, Halston Sowa remained a dazzling sight even after the life had been stabbed out of her._

_Knowing that her screams might attract the aggressive insect, Rani simply buries herself in Clyde's arms and points._

_Meeting Halston Sowa's dead sky-blue eyes, Clyde could see the terror in them as the remaining tears in her eyes streamed down her swollen cheeks-her boyfriend had just died after all; Clyde shuts Halston Sowa's eyelids. _

**Clyde: **"Rani…"

_Rani slowly raises her eyes._

**Clyde: **_ Kissing Rani's forehead _"I won't let anything happen to you, I promise."

* * *

_Smeared with the pus oozing from the abnormally large abscesses covering their classmates' corpses, Rani and Clyde scurry beneath the lab tables, avoiding shattered glass, fallen chairs, textbooks, notebooks, and schoolbags, as they make their way towards the room's entrance._

**Clyde: **"We're almost there…"

**Rani: **_Interrupting _"…Clyde…"

_His pupils dilate, practically to the size of his iris, as he stares at the pinky-size wasp on Rani's forearm. _

_The idea crawls into his mind almost immediately, knowing full well that by carrying out he could lose his life, but he knew that dying was less painful than living without the girl he loved. Gently lifting her chin, Clyde leans in, pressing his soft warm lips onto hers. _

_Knowing that Rani would be temporarily dumbstruck, he pushes the wasp off her forearm and onto his-it stings him._

_The venom spreads immediately, sending the sensation of being stabbed by millions of needles at once throughout this entire body. Grunting in pain, he retreats from the kiss. _

**Rani: **_Realizing what Clyde has done _"Why?"

**Clyde: **_Grunting_"I promised I wouldn't let anything happen to you…"

**Rani: **"Clyde..."

**Clyde: **_Placing a trembling hand on Rani's right shoulder _"Go."

_Comfort and security, were the feelings her lips transmitted across her tense body as Clyde's lips dominated hers, and now he needed her lips to do the same._

**Rani: **"I'll be back for you, I promise…"

_With tears in her eyes, Rani stumbles out of the classroom, collapsing onto the cold floor, as panic-stricken students and teacher rush by her, with the swarm of hornets hot on their trail-she blacks out._


End file.
